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jesse cloudI bought a new Delta DJ-20 jointer from a local supplier about 10 years ago. They delivered it by liftgate and placed it in the shop where I asked them to.

But, it was in three boxes: one for the table, one for the motor, and another with parts to assemble that would become the base.

Being a rank amateur mechanic, I was a true PITA to assemble and adjust, but I'm actually glad I did all that. I gained a pretty good understanding of how the machine fit together and how to fine tune the setup.

Years later I took a course on woodworking machine maintenance at the local community college. The instructor offered tune up/assembly help for any new or old tools we brought to class. We wound up unboxing and assembling three new jointer/planer machines - a Delta, a Grizzly, and a Jet. They were all clearly made on the same Asian assembly line with slightly different specs, mostly color and fit and finish details. The Jet was ready to go out of the crate, well tuned, flat, etc.
Delta was close. The Grizzly took several hours to work off burrs, adjust and shim for flatness, etc. So one data point on the issue.